DCC Buys Up More of Heating Oil Market

Around a third of the UK home heating oil market will be
controlled by major market player DCC, if its latest acquisition is
approved by regulators.

DCC, which is listed in Ireland, has rapidly bought up a number
of heating oil suppliers in the UK.

Its latest €67m (£58m) deal to purchase the oil
distribution assets of Total Butler, on top of its proposed
acquisition of Pace Fuelcare, would take its UK domestic market
share up from 25pc to between 30pc and 35pc.

The whole heating oil market serving at least 1m British homes
is currently under review by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT),
which is likely to look at the purchases of DCC as part of the
study. The market is very fragmented, with more than 175 players,
but some very big ones too, including DCC.

Earlier this month, the OFT criticised price comparison websites
run by some heating oil suppliers. It found the DCC failed to be
clear about its ownership of Boilerjuice.co.uk and discovered
false customer testimonials on the Fuelfighter.co.uk website run by
WCF Fuels, which were made up to make it appear to be a price
comparison website or look better.

After a 70pc price spike last winter, Charles Hendry, the energy
minister, called on the OFT to bring forward its study on the
industry.

Moorland Fuels was formed more than 15 years ago. The company
started by supplying lubricants throughout the South West.
Moorland Fuels is still a family-run business. Our reputation
has been built by our team of dedicated drivers and staff. We all
believe in what we do, and this can be seen in our commitment to
excellent service, which gives us the edge over our
competitors.

We are a fully independent fuel distributor
sourcing quality products at the most competitive price to
industry, farming and the home. We run all our own vehicles,
both for fuels and lubricants, from our depot in Okehampton and
keep an extensive stock to meet all our customers’ demands.
This gives us the flexibility to provide a fast, efficient and
professional service to our customers. If you need heating
oil in Devon give us a call.